1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a shoulder rest structure for a violin and a viola, which meets the ergonomics and makes violin/viola practice more comfortable.
2. Description of Prior Art
The currently popular shoulder rest structure for a violin and a viola serves two functions. One is to improve the gesture of holding the violin/viola. For a person having a shorter neck, the distance from the chin to the clavicle is larger than the summation of the thickness of the violin and the height of the chin rest. To clamp the violin in a most comfortable position, the person has to lift the shoulder slightly, turn the head left, or tilt the head down. Whatever way is taken, the shoulder is kept in tension. If such a tense gesture remains for a long time, the person is prone to suffer from a shoulder injury. Therefore, a shoulder rest can be used to mitigate this situation.
Besides, the back plate is the most expensive plate in a violin. The stripes and the origin place of the back plate are key points to determine the value and the timbre of the violin. If a shoulder rest is not used when the violin is playing, the shoulder contacts the back plate directly. At this moment, forces are exerted to clamp the violin by the shoulder and the chin at the same time. As a result, the violin is clamped and the vibration of the back plate is then dampened. If a shoulder rest is used, two legs of the shoulder rest hold the edge of the back plate firmly and keep the back plate a distance away from the shoulder. In this way, the back plate can vibrate freely to obtain a resonance effect.
Please refer to FIG. 1, this prior art comprises a shoulder rest 11 which can be placed on the shoulder of a performer. Adjustments pieces 12 are disposed at two ends of the shoulder rest 11. Although the adjustment pieces 12 can be used for angle adjustment, the shoulder rest 11 is heavier and has poor softness due to its material. Also, the adjusted angle is limited when the shoulder rest 11 is placed on the shoulder, resulting in poor sound quality during the violin playing. The violin body is fixed on the adjustment pieces 12 at two ends thereof. The higher pressure applied by the adjustment pieces 12 to fix the violin body causes insufficient resonance and makes the playing sound faint and muffled. In addition, the violin is prone to tilt when the angle adjustment is made. Also, when the shoulder rest 11 contacts the violin/viola, the paint on the surfaces of the violin/viola body is likely to peel and consequently the sound quality is affected.
In addition, for the shoulder rest structure used in a violin and fabricated using the current technical skills, the practitioner has to press against the tail of the violin with the neck, hold the neck of the violin with one hand, and hold the bow with the other hand. Such a design of the shoulder rest structure is likely to make the practitioner suffer from a sore stiff neck and to cause the head to tilt. After a long time, the shoulder of the practitioner is also likely to tilt, affecting the effective time and quality of the violin practice.
In summary, the prior art has the following disadvantages.
1. A sore stiff neck is likely suffered.
2. The effective time and quality of the violin practice is decreased.
3. The length of the shoulder rest cannot be adjusted at will.
4. The sound quality is affected.
Therefore, how to overcome the above problems and disadvantages of the prior art is the focus which the inventor and the related manufacturers in this industry have been devoting themselves to.